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No wheels go round on this school bus
By KRISTINA RAPLEY
Walking bus: Baverstock Oaks School students Lewis Atkinson, 5, left and Brooke Mason, 7, are walking to school with Kiwi triathlete
Ryan Sissons.
Photo: KRISTINA RAPLEY
Come rain, hail or shine ---
Baverstock Oaks students
are walking to school.
Being a Travelwise school
means students are encour-
aged to walk rather than get
dropped off by car.
The Walking School Bus is
popular with the Flat Bush
students who walk to and
from school every day under
the watchful eye of volunteer
supervisors.
Like a real bus, it travels at
a set time and children leave
the bus at special stops close
to where they live.
Kiwi triathlon champion
Ryan Sissons from Cockle
Bay joined the walking bus to
help celebrate Travelwise
week in March.
The 23-year-old has seen
students walking to school in
big groups while he is train-
ing but didn't realise what
they were doing until know.
It's a good concept. The
kids really enjoyed it, they
were all very cheerful and
really getting into it,'' he
says.
Auckland Transport com-
munity transport manager
Mathew Rednall says they
work with more than 250
schools in Auckland with
walking school buses.
The concept has been
around since the late 90s but
there has been a surge in
popularity over the past few
years.
Successful buses rely on
great volunteers, they are the
ones who really make it
work,'' he says.
Auckland Transport prov-
ides schools with support
packages including grants,
training and first aid courses
and extra incentives to make
it a positive experience.
It brings a lot of joy and
independence to students.
They are having fun on their
way to school rather than just
sitting in the car.''
TravelWise is run by the
Auckland Regional Transport
Authority in partnership with
Auckland Regional Council,
Land Transport New Zea-
land, Ministry of Health,
Roadsafe Auckland and
Auckland Council.
Visit www.travelwise.org.nz
for more information.
Go to www.eastern
courier.co.nz to see the
walking school bus.
Revved up: Cockle Bay School team Shell Shock competed in the
East Auckland Soapbox Derby last Sunday.
It was full speed ahead for
Cockle Bay School's soap box
derby team.
Pupils entered their team
Shell Shock in the Pak'n-
Save Glen Innes Soap Box
Derby races organised by the
Rotary Club of Auckland
East last Sunday.
They walked away with
the all round best team tro-
phy.
It was an awesome day
with our team winning eight
out of their 12 races,'' co-
ordinator Jayne de Groot
says.
The drivers, pit crew and
cheerleading team did an
amazing job and a huge
thank you to all the parents
and to our sponsors.''
Welcome to Milestones, our occasional feature. You're
all welcome to contribute a photo.
It might be a citizenship ceremony, birthday, gradu-
ation, baptism, new family member, wedding or anni-
versary. Send your high resolution digital photos with
names, ages, dates and further details to Milestones at
ec@snl.co.nz.